Top 5 Rumors, Myths and Legends of Warner Robins, Georgia Explained

Every city has its urban legends, its tall tales, and even its outright lies and Warner Robins is full of them. Warner Robins has come a long way from its humble beginnings and offers all the best of modern Southern life and the facts behind the myths surrounding everything from the rumors to the tall tales are explained here in this TOP 5.

In 1990, the Space Shuttle Discovery did land at Warner Robins AFB but not directly from its space flight. Warner Robins AFB does not have a sufficient length of runway to provide adequate distance for the slowing-down of a returning space shuttle. The Space Shuttle discovery was being flown piggy back, atop a specially fitted Boeing 747 on its way back to the Kennedy Space Center from Edwards AFB. There are only 3 official landing sites for NASA; Edwards AFB, Kennedy Space Center and White Sands Space Harbor. The NASA Boeing jet was returning the space shuttle Discovery to Cape Canaveral, Fla., when it was forced to stop overnight at Robins Air Force Base because of bad weather at its destination.

2. Warner Robins, Georgia was a model city to be built in a perfect circle

TRUE.

An article printed in a 1942 issue of the Macon News stated, “Designed over many months to be a perfect example of city planning, the town will be built in the shape of a great wheel, with the principle streets running out like the long spokes of a hub, framed by a large and luxurious central park…On one side of the great wheel will be only for residential units, while the other side of the wheel will be set aside for stores, theaters and other commercial concerns."

3. Warner Robins is the official “International City” of Georgia

TRUE.

Since 1968, the city was officially designated Georgia's "International City" because of the diversity of its resident population.

4. The PAVE PAW Radar located at RObins AFB was decommissioned in the 90's amid reports that thousands of dead birds were falling from the sky

FALSE.

The Robins AFB PAVE PAWS site became operational in 1986. PAVE PAWS stands for Precision Acquisition Vehicle Entry Phased Array Warning System. The 10-story, pyramid-shaped installation at Robins, one of four such facilities in the nation, has thousands of computer-directed antennas that can scan 240 degrees to a distance of 3,000 miles. The radar reportedly can identify an object the size of a basketball when it is 1,500 miles away. PAVE PAWS provided a warning against submarine-launched ballistic missiles. The facility was deactivated and the radar was removed due to its powerful electromagnetic emissions that endangered aircraft. No birds were killed as a result of the PAVE PAWS site.

5. The city of Warner Robins, Georgia is named after a former Railroad Chief Engineer

FALSE.

Established in 1821, Warner Robins Georgia was initially a just a train stop in a large farming community known as York. In 1865 the railroad came through and established a route north to Macon GA. The town was so appreciative; it changed its name to Wellston in honor of the chief engineer of the Georgia-Southern and Florida Railroad. However, in order to obtain a large military base during World War II, the area was renamed Warner Robins in honor of Brigadier General Augustine Warner Robins.

honorable mention - in warner robins, There is a cemetery located in the middle of a parking lot

TRUE.

"Little information exists regarding this cemetery. Long forgotten, it was discovered in 2005 listed on some old plats by an archaeologist who was researching the site for a commercial developer. The cemetery, abandoned and unmarked, sat right where Wal-Mart had planned to erect a brand new Supercenter. But, since state law didn't prohibit developing around cemeteries, so long as the graves are preserved, they just worked around it. A retaining wall was installed, the land was regraded and the surrounding surface was paved and striped."

For more on Warner Robins, Georgia, check out our Top 5 People From Warner Robins Worth Mentioning.